NAIDOC Week 2026 started yesterday, and as has become my tradition, I am devoting my NAIDOC Week Monday Musings to celebrating First Nations writers in some way. Each year has a theme, and for 2026 it is "50 Years Deadly", celebrating five decades in which NAIDOC Week has celebrated the voices of First Nations communities. … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Children’s picture books
First Nations Australia literature
Six degrees of separation, FROM Yesteryear TO …
Tomorrow, July 5, is the start of this year's NAIDOC Week in Australia. This year's theme is 50 Years of Deadly, commemorating 50 years of NAIDOC, but I'll do more on that in my traditional NAIDOC Week Monday Musings. Meanwhile, I have decided to dedicate this month's #SixDegrees to First Nations writing. If you don't … Continue reading Six degrees of separation, FROM Yesteryear TO …
ACT Literary Awards 2026
Last night, I attended the presentation of the ACT Literary Awards (as I have attended for the last few years). These awards are made by Marion (previously, the ACT Writers Centre), and were again emceed by CEO, Katy Mutton, and Board Chair, Emma Batchelor. The dress code was "Smart Casual to Creative Cocktail Attire". Ms … Continue reading ACT Literary Awards 2026
Tasma Walton, I am Nannertgarrook
As we got ready for our recent Melbourne trip, I was thinking about the then upcoming announcement of the Stella Prize shortlist, so I packed the two longlisted books I already had. But then, en route, we listened to the Secrets of the Green Room interview with Tasma Walton about her longlisted novel, I am … Continue reading Tasma Walton, I am Nannertgarrook
Aaron Fa’Aoso and Michelle Scott Tucker, Spirit of the crocodile (#Bookreview)
Aaron Fa'Aoso and Michelle Scott Tucker's Spirit of the crocodile is a children's/YA book, which makes it atypical reading for me. However, I'm not averse breaking my rules occasionally, and so I made an exception for this book - mainly because of its collaborative authorship and its setting. Aaron Fa'aoso and Michelle Scott Tucker have … Continue reading Aaron Fa’Aoso and Michelle Scott Tucker, Spirit of the crocodile (#Bookreview)
Canberra Writers Festival 2025: 6, Poems of love and rage
Evelyn Araluen, Maxine Beneba Clarke and Omar Musa with Jacqui Malins The program described the session as follows: An electrifying highlight of this year’s program, our poetry panel features some of Australia’s most acclaimed and innovative poets putting love and rage on the page. Overland Poetry Prize winner Evelyn Araluen (The Rot) joins Maxine Beneba … Continue reading Canberra Writers Festival 2025: 6, Poems of love and rage
Canberra Writers Festival 2025: 5, Our worlds, our way
Evelyn Araluen, Jasmin McGaughey and Lisa Fuller with Casey Mulder The program described the session as follows: Join this exciting First Nations panel including Evelyn Araluen, Jasmin McCaughey and Lisa Fuller to explore how culture and Country influence each author’s writing. Spanning poetry, YA and children’s novels, how do Indigenous worldviews emerge? As First Nations … Continue reading Canberra Writers Festival 2025: 5, Our worlds, our way
Wayne Bergmann and Madelaine Dickie, Some people want to shoot me (#BookReview)
Having finally read Wayne Bergmann and Madelaine Dickie's Some people want to shoot me, I am not surprised that it has been shortlisted in the Nonfiction category of this year's Western Australian Premier's Book Awards. It is moving; it is clearly written; and it is informative about big issues. Wayne Bergmann is a Nyikina* man … Continue reading Wayne Bergmann and Madelaine Dickie, Some people want to shoot me (#BookReview)
Monday musings on Australian literature: Collaborative story-telling between First Nations Australian and white writers
National NAIDOC Logo (2025) NAIDOC Week 2025 started yesterday, and as I have done for many years now, I am devoting my NAIDOC Week Monday Musings to celebrating First Nations writers in some way. This year is a particularly special year because it marks NAIDOC Week's 50th anniversary, 50 years it says, "of honoring and … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Collaborative story-telling between First Nations Australian and white writers
Monday musings on Australian literature: Historical fiction by First Nations writers
With this weekend in Australia being a long weekend for Australia Day (or, Invasion Day), I decided that the best thing I could do would be to write a post promoting historical fiction by First Nations Australian writers. While there are First Nations historians writing histories, I figure more people read historical fiction, given I'd … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Historical fiction by First Nations writers
Whispering Gums 